Irmo73's Build

[Irmo73]

So after 3 weeks of daily driving, took her back in to change the fluid in the new rear trutrack (supposed to change it after the first 500 miles)
Had noticed some steam in the exhaust and some leaking around the oil pan so I asked Dallas to take a look
Took the oil pan off and there's water in the pan along with small shards of metal!!!!
NOT good

[broncosbybart]

Uh oh. that doesn't sound good at all. Keep us posted. you can't catch a break, can ya?

[Crawdad]

This may be a slap in the face of those engine builders but is it a bad idea to buy a reman 302 from Advance Auto? I see they carry a warrantee. Or is it cheaper to get someone to rebuild it?

[Irmo73]

Its been running well with good temperature and oil pressure readings but obviously theres somthing major going on inside the block.
I guess we are talking about taking the engine out and a rebuild
thats going to take some money and time, I was really hoping to tackle the body work later this year and redo the interior
that will be on hold
another option is there is a '72 351W block at Dallas' shop just sitting there and looks to be in really good shape
it was supposed to go into a mustang build that never got done
soooo... rebuild my stock 302 or buy the 351 and have that rebuilt then swap out the engines?

Im favoring going the 351 route
its going to take at least a month for them to rebuild one of those engines and i can keep driving for now on my 302 (at least around town)

[Crawdad]

I'm in favor of the 351W!!! What is it out of? Some things will transfer over to a 351. How much does Dallas want to sell the 351 for? Make sure it hasn't already been rebuilt. I'm not a big fan of going from .030 over to .060 over. Charles you can chime in anytime. Regardless, a 351 is a horse and can pull w/ correct axle gears. Your c-4 tranny will bolt up
if I'm right. Your exhaust will not, but your carb will. Does ur new hydroboost come out at an angle? Here is where you might have a conflict. The heads on a 351 may hit your new hydroboost system if u don't have an angle bracket. You had one before you went HB (baby blue braket from Duffs). Lots of write-ups on Classic dealing with that issue.

I have a another 302 at my parents house in Little Mtn. Don't know what he wants for it but I'm sure its not much ($50-$100), its taking up space in his garage.

[Irmo73]

Uh oh. that doesn't sound good at all. Keep us posted. you can't catch a break, can ya?

I think I caught a break buying this rig 6 years ago and basically having no major issues for the first 5 -- and believe me, it had nothing to do with my bronco skills -- just a really good PO and dumb luck

ahh well call it karma cause it seems like I am now paying for all the blissfully ignorant fun I used to have with it

I will try to remain optimistic...

[Irmo73]

the 351 is from a '72 Galaxy and im pretty sure it hasnt been bored so we were talking about going 30 over, mild cam
i think the hydroboost will clear but still have the old bracket in case
pretty sure intake, carb, C4 will all be good
the headers wont fit??

[Crawdad]

Your intake will not work with a 351W. If its new you will probably need to sell it. A new one is not very expensive, < $150. I strongly suggest keeping that angle bracket nearby in case you need it. I went with an edelbrock RV cam in my 351. Its a lil better than the hi RPM/ hi torque cam I had in it AND it has better torque at lower RPM. You will also need to get adaptors for your new PS pump ($15 I think it was). Now here is another issue you may run into, the water pump. The lower hose may not line up as did with ur 302. I can't remember but did you go with a new radiator? Where is the lower outlet on the radiator? I went with a pricey FlowKooler that dumps on the passenger side. I also went with a new Champion radiator that the lower outlet is on the passenger side as well. A cheaper option would be to pipe it under the crank pulley. My dad did that for a long time and whenever the motor got too hot that was where it always popped off. Oh yeah, keep in mind that 351Ws tend to overheat so getting a bigger/ hi flow radiator is a must. Got to have air going thru those coil/ fins!!! You could run an electronic fan but I stayed with the OE fan. The headers will not fit either, the outlets are spaced further apart if I am right. I went with BCs shorty headers (again a lil pricey) but there are some out there <$300 maybe. Do stay with the carb though!

[Irmo73]

thanks for the info
just got the intake a few months ago

[Crawdad]

Yeah I figured. Nothing stopping you from sticking with a 302 though. You have the proper gears, so a good cam can give you a lil push. The 302 option would be far cheaper but will only give a tad more performance compared to your 302 you have now. Down the road you can get the right pieces and you can EFI the 302. My ball of knowledge stop shy of EFI.